As 2025 kicks off, the RV industry is optimistic about a rebound after a challenging year. According to RVshare’s 2025 Travel Trend Report and new data from Wakefield Research, we learned that 90% of travelers are planning to travel as much as last year, with 60% opting for road trips or RV vacations – a continuing 4-year trend. As professionals in the RV industry, understanding these trends can help guide how we market to the RV consumer and drive some specific changes, based on what we know about the audience. In the next two blogs, Watauga Group will explore how RV travel evolved last year and key marketing considerations for 2025.
Generational Differences: While the overall interest in RV trips is high, that doesn’t necessarily translate across the different generations. While RV travel remains popular with Millennials (76%) and Gen Z (67%), it has seen renewed interest among Gen X, with a 12-point increase from last year, reaching 67%. In contrast, only 29% of Boomers plan an RV trip in the next year.
- Marketing Considerations:
- Different generations consume media differently. Tailoring media channel strategies to your audience will ensure you are reaching the best audience for your brand as younger groups favor specific social platforms, content types and even search engines. Syndicated research can help identify the channels that work the best for your target.
- Generational life stages vary – some have young children, others older kids, and some are empty-nesters. Understanding your audience and who they are can help you tailor messaging benefits and promotions to meet their unique travel needs and preferences.
Benefits to RV Travel: RV travel is continuing to gain popularity for its schedule flexibility, lack of baggage fees and more predictable costs, leading 64% of travelers to consider renting an RV – a 10-point increase over last year. Travelers now prioritize amenities, like sleep capacity, modern features and pet-friendly options. For inexperienced renters, driving an RV can be a deterrent, but many rental companies offer delivery services, allowing travelers to fly to their destination and have the RV delivered directly to the site for added convenience.
- Marketing Considerations:
- Make sure to highlight RV travel benefits in your owned communications, focusing on what resonates most with your audience to influence their decisions.
- Understand your audience’s priorities when planning trips. Use digital media strategically, targeting key preferences like delivery options for renters without trucks. Creative, tailored campaigns can effectively reach those most interested in RV travel.
Expanded RV Use: Another trend revealed by RVshare’s Travel Trend Report shows that 47% of trip planners are considering RVs for accommodations beyond traditional camping, such as visits to national parks/ scenic areas, multi-day festivals or tailgating events, as they pursue their hobbies and interests.
- Marketing Considerations:
- Target digital campaigns based on the types of trips and destinations your audience prefers.
- Build partnerships with event venues to enhance engagement, like RV Dealership Campers Inn’s collaboration with Field & Stream, which provided mobile mechanics at their music festival. These partnerships foster consumer relationships and influence future decisions.
- Align marketing efforts with event timelines. Focus on festivals and events during their planning phases and national parks during peak weather seasons to maximize impact.
Larger Budgets, Longer Trips: In 2025, 63% of American travelers are increasing their travel budgets taking fewer but longer vacations. Of these, 41% plan to extend their trips compared to 2024, with 75% willing to splurge on experiences like dining, attractions, shopping, outdoor adventures and events. Top categories that Americans plan to splurge on include dining options, attractions, shopping, outdoor adventures and events. More than 70% of travelers believe that splurging is the way to make the trip more enjoyable, with adding memory-making opportunities and creating greater bonding opportunities with family and friends as the top reasons for spending extra money.
The trend toward longer trips is also fueling the return of the annual vacation. Whether family vacations of friends’ getaways, 67% of parents want to recreate their own childhood travel experiences for their kids, and 53% of respondents plan annual trips, a 10-point increase from 2024. Prioritizing family time (65%) is driving this renewed interest in shared travel.
- Marketing Considerations:
- Use targeted digital ads to align with travelers’ passions, habits, and life stages, promoting family-friendly RVs or adventure-ready models.
- Leverage owned channels like blogs, videos, and website content to provide travel tips and inspiration, capturing new customers during their planning phase.
- Partner with influencers and travel bloggers to showcase RV travel as a cost-effective, enjoyable alternative to traditional vacations. These content creators are trusted sources of information and can demonstrate in real time how an RV can work out better for travel than a standard trip with a hotel room.
- Explore experiential marketing by sponsoring or creating events to let consumers experience RV comfort and spaciousness first-hand.
Evolving for Success: As RV travel continues to grow in 2025, evolving trends present an opportunity for RV dealers and manufacturers to refine marketing plans and evolve their strategies. With more travelers opting for longer trips and larger budgets, there is a growing interest in RV travel as a flexible and cost-effective option. Understanding generational preferences, the increasing demand for amenities, and the shift toward family-focused and hobby-driven vacations will be key to targeting the right audience. By utilizing a number of different marketing tactics, RV businesses can tap into this momentum and build deeper connections with customers, ultimately driving growth in the year ahead.
